AP File PhotoDetroit Lions coach Jim Schwartz said cutting Aaron Berry was an easy decision from a team standpoint.

ALLEN PARK -- The Detroit Lions were expecting big things from cornerback Aaron Berry in his third season, but after the projected starter was arrested twice in the month leading up to training camp, the team had no choice but to cut ties.

"First of all, that was a very difficult situation from a football standpoint. Aaron had come a long way as a player," Lions coach Jim Schwartz said. "He had an outstanding spring for us on the football field and had really done a nice job. So from a football standpoint, that was a very, very difficult decision.

"From a team standpoint, it was an easy decision," Schwartz continued. "I think every player knew, when we left here in the spring, based on what had gone on in the spring, every player was well aware of the stakes that were in play for the break before training camp. It was very disappointing he didn't respond."

Berry's arrests -- first for a DUI in late June then for brandishing a firearm during an altercation on July 14 -- came on the heels of five additional offseason arrests for Lions players.

At the time of his release on Monday, Berry was the only Lions player to be let go because of an arrest. Offensive tackle Johnny Culbreath, who was arrested for marijuana possession in January, was cut later in the week when the team signed Jonathan Scott. That move was more about upgrading talent than punishing Culbreath for his transgression.

Second-year players Mikel Leshoure and Nick Fairley, both arrested twice this offseason, are not in danger of being cut and remain part of Lions' plans going forward. Leshoure has already been suspended the first two games of the season while Fairley could face a similar punishment once both of his cases have been adjudicated.

Schwartz wouldn't elaborate on the specific criteria which led to Berry's departure, saying only each situation is different.

"Two incidents, including one with a gun, was very disappointing and it was an easy decision for the team," Schwartz said.

Even though Berry's departure creates a hole in the Lions' projected starting lineup, Schwartz explained why he's comfortable with the decision.

"One of the ways I came to peace with it was if knowing what the stakes were coming into it, if somebody could make two really bad errors in judgment, bad decisions, in that short period of time, what would they do during a big game? What would they do when the stakes were just as high? We were playoff team last year. We aspire to be a contender year in and year out. Is that the kind of guy that can make good decision in big games? It's all part of the same picture. That's one of the things we were able to come to peace with is that it was a sign of other things.